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The slate of insurgent union members competing for the leadership of the Public Employees Federation has gathered the requisite petition signatures needed to make the ballot.

“Thanks to all who carried and signed petitions for NY Union Proud (NYUP),” says a letter on the group’s Facebook page.

The letter says their effort is now focusing on a Get Out the Vote effort for the June elections. They are also seeking financial help, noting that mailings to reach the 53,000 voting members run about $30,000 each.

The new group, led by Susan Kent, who works at the state Department of Education, is challenging PEF’s leadership on a variety of issues but they seem to be focusing on the recent contract, which brings three years without contractual raises.

PEF members approved the deal on a second vote at the urging of President Ken Brynien, who warned that the Cuomo Administration would have carried out some 3,500 layoffs in order to save money if concessions weren’t made.

Mailed ballots for PEF leadership are set to go out June 4 and they must be returned on June 25th.

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Capitol Confidential gathers the best coverage of New York politics and puts it all together. Each section - Capitol, The State Worker, New York on the Potomac, and Voices - represents a unique facet of the political scene. The Capitol section features coverage from the Times Union Capitol bureau. The State Worker is dedicated to state worker issues. New York on the Potomac offers news of interest to New Yorkers from Washington. And Voices features the best of everything else, pointing you to columnists and bloggers from across the Web.